Monsters at the Door 2 of 9

The blood rushed to Becky's head as she fought to maintain coherence. Her arms strained but a familiar scratchy sensation informed her that her wrists were bound behind her back. She let out a helpless frustrated groan but it came out...

"Mmmmmppphhhhhhnnnnnn!!!"

Of course I'm gagged, she thought. She shook her head trying to clear the mounting pressure pounding at her temples and behind her eyes. Gosh, I feel like I'm gonna be sick, thought Becky. Maybe I should sit down... She looked down at her feet to try to navigate her way to safety, but found more scratchy rope coiled generously around her trim stocking bearing ankles. Oh great! I'm definitely gonna need fresh pantyhose after this! What the heck, guys!? I'm living paycheck to paycheck here as a reporter for the Manchester Daily Times. I gotta make my nylons last! My God, I feel like I'm gonna pass out... wh-wh-what...?

Becky craned her neck around and realized a number of things quickly. One, she was hanging upside down by her bound ankles. Two, her hands were tied behind her back. Three, she was gagged with a very ill tasting rag that assaulted her finer feminine sensibilities. And four? She was hanging over what appeared to be a rather large and most notably, boiling stone cauldron.

WHAT!?

Red frothy liquid bubbled, burped, popped, and hissed mere inches below her cute little blonde head. A cocktail composed of heat and the fact that she was hanging helplessly upside down directly above the boiling broth was all it took to cause Becky to feverishly twist, bend, and attempt to sway her body away from what awaited her below.

I know I said I needed a hot bath, but THIS is ridiculous!

In her bound state, all this rewarded her with was an unimaginable stamina drain, that left her already woozy head threatening to slip her into unconsciousness. Blurry green monstrous shapes stepped into her peripheral vision. They had horrifyingly shaped bodies with sickeningly green leathery skin. Sharp features matched needle-like teeth that lined their wicked mouths, and their beady staring eyes were instant nightmare fuel. One of them approached Becky's dangling body and cradled her skull in its disproportionately large sharp-nailed hands. It mussed her blonde hair twisting her neck, tilting her head so that it could regard the smooth skin on her reddened cheeks while tracing a dry cracked finger over the curious freckles that adorned her skin. She fluttered her eyelashes furiously as she was examined, inspected.

Dawn did NOT say anything about GOBLINS! What the heck was going on here!? Where did that Door lead her??? And where was Dawn!? The questions were piling up faster than the blood pounding in her head. Surely Dawn could not have been serious that there was some Door that could lead to another dimension where goblins were REAL!? Just what the heck had she gotten herself into this time!?

Meanwhile the other creature grabbed her slender arm, comically skinny in his vast grip, as he worked to center her over the steamy cauldron. Turning her heat squinting eyes up toward the ground, Becky swallowed the growing lump in her throat. Maybe I won't need new pantyhose after all? She thought with a tremble that made her blood suddenly run cold.